Air modulation systems and methods

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods for modulation of airflow within an existing air conditioning system are described. The existing system includes an air conditioning or HVAC unit coupled with air supply and return ducts. Motorized dampers can be controlled by a controller that receives information about various rooms and areas from temperature and occupancy sensors within those rooms or areas. In this manner, conditioned air can be directed to those rooms that are occupied and whose temperature needs correction based on a thermostat setting.

This application claims priority to U.S. provisional application having Ser. No. 62/532,907, filed on Jul. 14, 2017. This and all other referenced extrinsic materials are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. Where a definition or use of a term in a reference that is incorporated by reference is inconsistent or contrary to the definition of that term provided herein, the definition of that term provided herein is deemed to be controlling.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The field of the invention is air modulation and air circulation technologies.

BACKGROUND

The background description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.

Typical air conditioning system(s) in buildings are composed of four main components: (a) an air-conditioning or HVAC unit, (b) cold air supply ducts, (c) return air ducts, and (d) a thermostat. FIG. 1 is a general illustration for an air conditioning system in a large home. The cold air duct extends from the supply plenum of the air conditioning unit to each of the supply diffusers distributed in the home. The return ducts connect the return diffusers in each area with the return plenum on the air conditioning unit. The thermostat senses the temperature at its location and based on the temperature reading powers on or off the air conditioning unit.

Such system has many inherent problems, especially in larger spaces. For example, the cooling equipment and the air distribution system are the two major components affecting air conditioning performance in a building. Unfortunately, there is no mechanism to diffuse the cold air efficiently in the building according to occupancy status and requirement of specific areas within the building. In addition, the air flow of a traditional air conditioner is constant, which makes it very difficult to control temperature in each room unless a large bypass duct with a motorized or gravity damper is installed. Such a bypass system would not only require a large amount of space but may also cause air short circuiting such that the cooling coil of the air conditioning unit becomes frozen.

Another problem is that current systems are unable to provide temperature distribution consistent with the expectation of those occupying the space. This is because the air conditioning system turns on and off according to the temperature where the thermostats are located, whereas each room within a building normally has a different actual temperature and requirement than that where the thermostat is located.

Still another problem is that typical building air conditioning systems are oversized for the location having an extreme heating load (e.g., the warmest area or portion of a building). The heating load relates to the heat transfer through opaque objects, solar heat gains through windows, and occupant density. As the heating load can vary significantly in a given space or building, air conditioning units are typically sized for the location with the largest heating load, which might be the area closest to the window facing southwest and/or the area with high occupancy. Thus, energy is often wasted due to the use of oversized equipment, and people often feel uncomfortable in the cold spots or where the heating load is lowest.

Thus, there remains a need for an improved air circulation system that efficiently circulates air among different sections within a building to reach the requirement of each room.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The inventive subject matter provides apparatus, systems, and methods for modulating air flow within a HVAC system to allow traditional HVAC units to achieve room-by-room temperature control functionality by directing air flow.

Contemplated air modulation systems are configured to effectively direct air to different rooms or spaces within a structure or building depending on the occupancy status of the building, the room or space, and/or other specific requirements. In addition, the air modulation system contemplated herein also includes electronically controllable dampers along the HVAC ducts or at the air outlets. The air modulation system can thereby control the dampers to vary the amount of opening at the damper and control the air pressure and flow rate to each room.

The air modulation system may also include different types of sensors (e.g., occupancy sensors, temperature sensors, pressure sensors, etc.) within one or more rooms of a structure. The air modulation system further comprises a controller that is preferably not communicatively coupled with the HVAC unit, but is communicatively coupled with the sensors, and the dampers. The controller can be implemented as a circuitry or a programmable processor with memory that stores software instructions or an analog system composed of relays. In some embodiments, the controller is programmed to retrieve sensor data from the different sensors in the rooms or spaces and to control the dampers in the different ducts to deliver air from the main HVAC unit to any space for its specific requirement.

Various objects, features, aspects and advantages of the inventive subject matter will become more apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments, along with the accompanying drawing figures in which like numerals represent like components.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic of an air conditioning system within a structure.

FIG. 2 illustrates a schematic of one embodiment of an air modulation system.

FIG. 3 illustrates a damper with a motor controller.

FIG. 4 illustrates components of one embodiment of a HVAC system within a building.

FIG. 5 illustrates a schematic of an embodiment of an air modulation system in use within a two-story structure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

It should be noted that any language directed to a computer should be read to include any suitable combination of computing devices, including servers, interfaces, systems, databases, agents, peers, engines, controllers, or other types of computing devices operating individually or collectively. One should appreciate the computing devices comprise a processor configured to execute software instructions stored on a tangible, non-transitory computer readable storage medium (e.g., hard drive, solid state drive, RAM, flash, ROM, etc.). The software instructions preferably configure the computing device to provide the roles, responsibilities, or other functionality as discussed below with respect to the disclosed apparatus. In especially preferred embodiments, the various servers, systems, databases, or interfaces exchange data using standardized protocols or algorithms, possibly based on HTTP, HTTPS, AES, public-private key exchanges, web service APIs, known financial transaction protocols, or other electronic information exchanging methods. Data exchanges preferably are conducted over a packet-switched network, the Internet, LAN, WAN, VPN, or other type of packet switched network.

The following discussion provides many example embodiments of the inventive subject matter. Although each embodiment represents a single combination of inventive elements, the inventive subject matter is considered to include all possible combinations of the disclosed elements. Thus if one embodiment comprises elements A, B, and C, and a second embodiment comprises elements B and D, then the inventive subject matter is also considered to include other remaining combinations of A, B, C, or D, even if not explicitly disclosed.

Contemplated systems and methods for air modulation with a building or structure include a series of motorized dampers along the HVAC ducts or at the outlets. The motorized dampers can be controlled by a wireless or wired controller which preferably collects temperature readings at different rooms or locations within the structure and the occupancy status at those locations. The controller can either be a digital computer system or be an analog system composed by multiple relays. The controller preferably has built-in logic, which includes a priority list to activate (open) the motorized dampers and vary the air flow to each room. In this manner, air flow can specifically be directed to only the occupied rooms that require conditioning.

Preferred systems also include pressure relief functionality, which can be controlled by the controller based on readings from one or more pressure sensors. The functionality provides for one or more dampers to be open if the pressure in a duct exceeds a predetermined threshold, such as in situations where many if not all of the dampers are closed while the HVAC unit is operating. This functionality advantageously allows the system to work with a traditional air conditioner, which has constant air flow.

Preferred systems are also capable of operating with traditional HVAC units and systems as an add-on component. No communication is required between the HVAC unit and the controller. In addition, the dampers can be installed at outlets or within an existing system, and temperature and occupancy sensors can be installed which communicate with the controller of the air modulation system. Thus, the air modulation systems contemplated herein can operate completely independent of and separate from the existing air conditioner system.

FIG. 2 illustrates a schematic of a preferred embodiment of an air modulation system 200. The air modulation system 200 includes a controller 205, occupancy sensors 210 a-210 n, temperature sensors 215 a-215 n, one or more static pressure sensors 220 and motorized dampers 225 a-225 n. Although the figure only shows two types of sensors, other types of sensors (e.g., carbon dioxide sensors, air pressure sensor, etc.) can be included within the air modulation system 200 as well. Of course, the number and type of sensors used with the system 200 can vary depending on the specific application.

Controller 205 can be a digital computer system or an analog system composed of relays. In preferred embodiments, controller 205 is communicatively coupled with the occupancy sensors 210 a-210 n, the temperature sensors 215 a-215 n, and the motorized dampers 225 a-225 n. The controller 205 is programmed to retrieve or receive sensor data from the occupancy sensors 210 a-210 n, temperature sensors 215 a-215 n and a pressure sensor 220, for example. Based at least in part on the received data, the controller 205 is programmed to send a control signal to one or more of the dampers to adjust the settings of the one or more dampers.

The motorized dampers utilized within the system can include outlet dampers and/or in-line dampers. Outlet dampers are installed at the air outlets and are controlled by electrical power. The pole will be alternated to reflect open/close states. In-line dampers are generally rectangular or circular in shape so as to fit the conduit/duct, and connected to the air ducts. In-line dampers are similar to outlet dampers and also have shutter blinds controlled by a motor. In-line dampers generally are of two types: (1) motor open and spring close and (2) motor open/close.

One example of a controllable HVAC outlet zoning damper 300 is shown in FIG. 3A-3B. The overall dimension of the damper 300 is suitable for covering the outlet of HVAC outlet. Damper 300 comprises a housing and two primary components, i.e., motor controller 310 which is coupled with mechanical shutter blinds 320, and configured to rotate or otherwise move the blinds 320 to increase or decrease a gap between adjacent blinds.

FIGS. 3A-3B illustrate closed and open positions of damper 300, respectively. As shown in FIG. 3A, damper 300 is fully closed when the shutter blinds 320 are fully expanded by the motor controller 310. Compare that to FIG. 3B where the blinds 320 are otherwise open to a certain degree when an axis of the shutter blinds 320 is rotated by way of motor controller 310 to some degrees. A specific amount of air could pass through the air gap between the shutter blinds as shown in FIG. 3B.

The rotating angle of the axis, thus the motor controller 310, is flexible and determined by the whole system such as that described with respect to FIG. 2 when the parameters such as wind speed, pressure and temperature are concerned.

FIG. 4 illustrates one embodiment of an HVAC system 400 inside of a building 402, with the building 402 having a single air conditioning supply 404. Supply branches 106 and return branches 408 are coupled with the supply 404 to move air into and out from rooms or areas within the building 402. Although a specific number of supply and return branches are shown, the number of such branches can be varied without departing from the scope of the invention.

The different supply grilles 410 a-410 n in FIG. 4 represent the grilles to one or more types of individual space, including bedrooms, living rooms, conference rooms, custody rooms, halls, warehouses, etc., or sections thereof. As shown, grilles 410 a-410 c are each connected with a zone damper 412 a-412 c, and grilles 410 d-410 n are not connected to a zone dampers. Of course, the use of zone dampers with grilles will depend on the specific application and the specific number used will vary. Because grilles 410 a-410 c are connected with a zone damper, those grilles 410 a-410 c are referred to as PRD grilles, which are normally closed (e.g., initial position is closed).

The static pressure is connected to the supply plenum at the traditional air handler.

System 400 can further include room thermostats 414 a-414 c and occupancy sensors 416 a-416 c connected to the controller 420 and located in individual spaces. When the air conditioner 404 is called by the main thermostat 430, the blower 405 blows conditioned air into the duct system at a constant air volume via supply ducts 406. The controller 420 is configured to analyze temperature data from the thermostats 414 a-414 c and signals from the occupancy sensors 416 a-416 c at each space. If a space is occupied and requires conditioning, the grilles with motorized dampers (GMDs) can be caused to open; otherwise the grilles preferably remain closed.

Advantageously, system 400 can be configured such that the ducts to the GMDs are sized to be larger than those ducts to grilles without dampers. In this manner, a larger amount of air will flow to the GMDs and less air will flow to the spaces without dampers. In this manner, the spaces with a GMD will be conditioned more quickly than those without a GMD. When the spaces with GMDs reach the desired temperature, the GMD can be closed by the controller 420, which will result in more air being forced into the spaces without the GMD.

In situations where too many GMDs are closed, pressure in the supply plenum can exceed desired ranges. In such situations, the static pressure sensor 422 will signal the controller 420 to open the pressure relief damper 424 to thereby reduce the pressure within the duct. Alternatively or additionally, the controller 420 can signal to one or more of the GMDs to open at least partially to reduce the pressure within the duct. Typically, this will continue until the HVAC unit 404 is shut down.

As discussed above, the air modulation systems and methods contemplated herein can advantageously achieve priority conditioning of one or more spaces within a larger building, for example. This is accomplished by duct sizing and/or additional blocks/dampers within or at the outlets of the ducts, as well as the use of a controller that prioritizes conditioning of certain spaces over others depending on occupancy, temperature and/or other factors.

FIG. 5 illustrates a two-story townhome 502. It has two bedrooms on the upper level, a living room, and another bedroom at the lower level. Each of the three bedrooms includes a motorized damper or GMD 510 a-510 c, a thermostat 512 a-512 c, and an occupancy sensor 514 a-514 c. A pressure relief damper (PRD) 516 can be installed in the living room, for example. Because the bedrooms on the upper level will generally require more cooling in summer but less heating in winter due to the natural tendency of rising heat, the duct system is preferably configured to achieve a pressure drop that has the following relationship by upsizing the ducts where applicable, or adding blocks/dampers within the ducts, such as a butterfly damper: the pressure drop at the upper level GMDs 510 a-510 b should be less than the pressure drop at the bottom level GMD 510 c, which should be less than the pressure drop to the PRD 516 in the living room.

In this manner, a minimum amount of air will flow to the living room when all of the GMDs 510 a-510 c are called to open, such as by controller 520. During the daytime, for example, people may more likely be in the living room rather than the bedrooms. In such situations, the GMDs 510 a-510 b in the bedrooms can be kept closed or closed by controller 520 based on readings from the occupancy sensor(s) 514 a-514 b. This will then result in most if not all of the air from the HVAC unit 540 to flow to the living room to cool the living room quickly.

When the living room is unoccupied and occupants are only in one or more of the bedrooms, the GMDs in those rooms that are occupied can open to condition those rooms, and the living room will be conditioned more slowly due to insufficient conditioned air. Once the bedrooms are conditioned, the GMDs in those rooms can be partially or fully closed, and the living room will condition more quickly. Thus, in this configuration, the controller 520 is configured such that the upper level bedrooms have the highest priority to condition, the bottom level bedroom has a middle priority to condition, and the living room has the lowest priority to condition.

Although the above example describes an air modulation system 500 that works along with an air conditioning unit, it is contemplated that the air modulation systems described herein could work with a heating unit or furnace to achieve similar results in conditioning.

As used herein, and unless the context dictates otherwise, the term “coupled to” is intended to include both direct coupling (in which two elements that are coupled to each other contact each other) and indirect coupling (in which at least one additional element is located between the two elements). Therefore, the terms “coupled to” and “coupled with” are used synonymously.

In some embodiments, the numbers expressing quantities of ingredients, properties such as concentration, reaction conditions, and so forth, used to describe and claim certain embodiments of the invention are to be understood as being modified in some instances by the term “about.” Accordingly, in some embodiments, the numerical parameters set forth in the written description and attached claims are approximations that can vary depending upon the desired properties sought to be obtained by a particular embodiment. In some embodiments, the numerical parameters should be construed in light of the number of reported significant digits and by applying ordinary rounding techniques. Notwithstanding that the numerical ranges and parameters setting forth the broad scope of some embodiments of the invention are approximations, the numerical values set forth in the specific examples are reported as precisely as practicable. The numerical values presented in some embodiments of the invention may contain certain errors necessarily resulting from the standard deviation found in their respective testing measurements.

Unless the context dictates the contrary, all ranges set forth herein should be interpreted as being inclusive of their endpoints and open-ended ranges should be interpreted to include only commercially practical values. Similarly, all lists of values should be considered as inclusive of intermediate values unless the context indicates the contrary.

As used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “a,” “an,” and “the” includes plural reference unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Also, as used in the description herein, the meaning of “in” includes “in” and “on” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

The recitation of ranges of values herein is merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range. Unless otherwise indicated herein, each individual value with a range is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g. “such as”) provided with respect to certain embodiments herein is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element essential to the practice of the invention.

Groupings of alternative elements or embodiments of the invention disclosed herein are not to be construed as limitations. Each group member can be referred to and claimed individually or in any combination with other members of the group or other elements found herein. One or more members of a group can be included in, or deleted from, a group for reasons of convenience and/or patentability. When any such inclusion or deletion occurs, the specification is herein deemed to contain the group as modified thus fulfilling the written description of all Markush groups used in the appended claims.

It should be apparent to those skilled in the art that many more modifications besides those already described are possible without departing from the inventive concepts herein. The inventive subject matter, therefore, is not to be restricted except in the spirit of the appended claims. Moreover, in interpreting both the specification and the claims, all terms should be interpreted in the broadest possible manner consistent with the context. In particular, the terms “comprises” and “comprising” should be interpreted as referring to elements, components, or steps in a non-exclusive manner, indicating that the referenced elements, components, or steps may be present, or utilized, or combined with other elements, components, or steps that are not expressly referenced. Where the specification claims refers to at least one of something selected from the group consisting of A, B, C . . . and N, the text should be interpreted as requiring only one element from the group, not A plus N, or B plus N, etc. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A system for modulating air flow within a structure comprising multiple rooms and having an air conditioning unit that feeds conditioned air to a branched air duct having a plurality of outlets, and receives air from a return duct, comprising: a first motorized damper configured to control air flow to a first room of the structure; a first temperature sensor disposed in the first room; a first occupancy sensor disposed in the first room; a controller communicatively coupled with the first temperature and occupancy sensors, such that information from the first temperature and occupancy sensors can be received by the controller; wherein the controller is communicatively coupled with the first motorized damper; and wherein the controller is configured to send a command signal to the first motorized damper based at least in part on the received information from the first temperature and occupancy sensors to cause the first motorized damper to open and permit air flow to the first room.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller is not communicatively coupled with the air conditioning unit of the structure.
 3. The system of claim 1, wherein the first motorized damper is disposed at a first outlet of the branched air duct at the first room.
 4. The system of claim 3, wherein the first motorized damper is incorporated into a grille disposed at the first outlet.
 5. The system of claim 1, further comprising a pressure sensor disposed within the branched air duct, and wherein the controller is communicatively coupled with the pressure sensor.
 6. The system of claim 5, further comprising a pressure relief damper disposed at an outlet of the branched air duct, and wherein the controller is configured to open the pressure relief damper when the pressure sensor detects a pressure within the branched air duct that exceeds a predetermined threshold.
 7. The system of claim 5, wherein the controller is configured to open the first motorized damper when the pressure sensor detects a pressure within the branched air duct that exceeds a predetermined threshold.
 8. The system of claim 1, further comprising: a second motorized damper configured to control air flow to a second room of the structure different from the first room; a second temperature sensor disposed in the second room; a second occupancy sensor disposed in the second room; a controller communicatively coupled with the second temperature and occupancy sensors, such that information from the second temperature and occupancy sensors can be received by the controller; wherein the controller is communicatively coupled with the second motorized damper; and wherein the controller is configured to send a command signal to the second motorized damper based at least in part on the received information from the second temperature and occupancy sensors to cause the second motorized damper to open and permit air flow to the second room.
 9. The system of claim 8, wherein the second motorized damper is disposed at a second outlet of the branched air duct at the second room.
 10. The system of claim 9, wherein the second motorized damper is incorporated into a second grille disposed at the second outlet.
 11. The system of claim 8, further comprising a pressure sensor disposed within the branched air duct, and wherein the controller is communicatively coupled with the pressure sensor, and wherein the controller is configured to open the first or second motorized dampers when the pressure sensor detects a pressure within the branched air duct that exceeds a predetermined threshold.
 12. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to send a command signal to the first motorized damper to open when the first temperature sensor detects a temperature that is above or below a preset threshold and when the first occupancy sensor detects one or more occupants within the first room.
 13. A system for modulating air flow within a structure comprising a plurality of rooms that includes first, second, and third rooms, and wherein the structure comprises an air conditioning unit that provides conditioned air to a branched air duct having outlets in each of the plurality of rooms, comprising: first, second, and third motorized dampers each of which is configured to regulate air flow to the first, second and third rooms of the structure, respectively; first, second, and third temperature sensors disposed in the first, second and third rooms, respectively; first, second, and third occupancy sensors disposed in the first, second and third rooms, respectively; a controller communicatively coupled with the first, second, and third temperature sensors and the first, second, and third occupancy sensors, and wherein the controller is communicatively coupled with the first, second, and third motorized dampers; wherein the controller is configured to send a command signal to the first and second motorized dampers based at least in part on the received information from the first and second temperature sensors and the first and second occupancy sensors to cause the first and second motorized dampers to open and permit air flow to the first and second rooms; and wherein the controller is not communicatively coupled with the air conditioning unit.
 14. The system of claim 13, further comprising a pressure sensor disposed within the branched air duct, and wherein the controller is communicatively coupled with the pressure sensor.
 15. The system of claim 14, further comprising a pressure relief damper disposed at an outlet of the branched air duct, and wherein the controller is configured to open the pressure relief damper when the pressure sensor detects a pressure within the branched air duct that exceeds a predetermined threshold.
 16. The system of claim 15, wherein the first and second motorized dampers are disposed on an upper level, and the third motorized damper of the pressure relief damper are disposed on a lower level, and wherein the system is configured such that a pressure drop to the first and second motorized dampers is less than a pressure drop to the third motorized damper, which is less than a pressure drop to the pressure relief damper.
 17. The system of claim 14, wherein the controller is configured to open the first, second, or third motorized damper when the pressure sensor detects a pressure within the branched air duct that exceeds a predetermined threshold.
 18. The system of claim 13, wherein the structure further comprises a fourth room, and wherein the fourth room lacks a motorized damper.
 19. The system of claim 13, wherein the controller is configured to send a command signal to the first motorized damper to open when the first temperature sensor detects a temperature that is above or below a preset threshold and when the first occupancy sensor detects one or more occupants within the first room.
 20. The system of claim 1, wherein the first motorized damper is disposed at a first outlet of the branched air duct at the first room. 